Slytherin Pride
by LoneGhost
Summary: Once upon a time... all the good ones start like that. But this is after that once upon a time. This is the second generation, and will youknowwho finally end like all the good ones do? wiht a the end?
1. Chapter One

**Disclaimer: Certain of these characters belong to JK Rowling, as does the world they live in**

**Warnings for the Chapter: Um... maybe launguage? but i doubt it. And suggestive-ness maybe**

**Slytherin Pride**

**Chapter One: Birds of a Feather Flock Together**

A girl sauntered up onto platform ten of the Kings Cross station in London. She had a sheet of long, pale blonde hair, and her eyes were a pale grey with the slightest hint of green. She looked about… fifteen, which was correct, and her stride was confident. A boy that was the picture of her, turned male, stalked along next to her. He was obviously her twin, and the two shared a disgusted glance every time a muggle tried to communicate something to them. A man with pale blonde hair and piercing grey-blue eyes strode next to her. A woman, with dark hair and pale green blue eyes walked next to them, nodding to a few people. The man pushed a cart, his wiry muscles not the least bit taxed. The odd thing about this normal looking family, apart from their unusual dress, was the cart. It carried a wooden trunk, two bags and a package. Not to mention a hawk like bird in a cage. The package seemed to be a large box, and the owl opened its hawk like eyes and narrowed them at a lurking toddler. Then… they vanished. Right into the wall of platforms nine and ten.

Despite the appearance of the disappearance, they had not vanished. They had simply walked through the wall to a different platform. In front of which a large, violently red steam engine was puffing.

"Marina, we leave you here," the man said and walked away, sneering at a large gaggle of redheads that passed.

"Yes father. Goodbye," the girl said, a little coolly. She was not one for outward shows of emotion. Her mother lightly pecked her on the cheek, then took her fathers arm, and they, once again 'disappeared' into the wall. Marina looked around, waiting for a certain boy. As she saw him approaching, she fought the urge to beat her tail out of there, and waited, her eyes a little icy.

The approaching boy had bushy red hair, and was tall and lanky. He grinned at her, his freckled face lighting up at the sight of her. He had a rather snubbed nose and teeth a little larger than was normal. He ears also stuck out a bit.

"Need some help?" he asked brightly, almost bouncing up and down.

Marina surveyed him, and finally said, "That would be… kind of you," with a chilly smile.

He Nodded, and lifted the trunk, putting it into the last train car, where trunks were kept. Then he shouldered her two bags, put the package under one arm, and picked up the owls cage. "Where are you sitting?" he asked, his brown eyes wide.

She only nodded in thanks and walked to the second to last car of the train where students were allowed to sit. She opened the third compartment, and pointed to an empty rack. "Could you put it there, Jacob?" she asked, her voice cool.

"It's Jake and sure. Can-" He began to ask, but stopped. A group of six others had just arrived.

"Thank you." She said in a polite voice, and as soon as he turned his back a sneer met her beautiful face. Her face would have been attractive without the blood running in her veins, but since her father had vela blood, it only helped. She nodded a hello to the four boys and two girls that had scared the Weasly boy away. She was already wearing her school clothes, and so were they. She wore a tailored grey skirt, a white button up with a grey sweater that clung, over it. She had a cloak, and a silver and green scarf on one arm, and her shoes were light brown leather. They had lambs wool on the inside, and were quite comfortable, not to mention against the dress code. The green snake insignia on her sweatshirt, as well as the scarf, were indicators that she was a member of the Slytherin house. The badge clipped to her chest ensured that she was a prefect.

She led the way into the compartment as sat in one of the middle seats. A girl sat on one side, and a boy on the other. The other four sat across from them.

On perusing this group one would find that there was a clear hierarchy.

Marina Malfoy, a girl with ash blonde hair and pale skin seemed to be the leader. She had a commanding presence among them, and for a reason. She sat sprawled in her chair, an almost lazy likeness about her. Her slim figure didn't even take up the entire chair, but her attitude filled the entire compartment. On first glance one could tell she was confident, and quick. Her mind worked faster than her mouth (which was saying something) and she picked up on her surroundings easily. Her confident outer shell was a bit tarnished to some by her smug, arrogant, sarcastic air. Not to mention a slightly evil, and cold manner about her. But she did have a sly, humorous attitude, though her sense of humor was slightly dark. She was quite ambitious, but hid nearly everything good about herself, daring the world with her arrogance and self confidence.

Chloe Black was the other pretty one in the group. With her dark curls, honey skin, and crystalline blue eyes she attracted an amount of boys seconded only by Marina. She had a thoughtful and quiet disposition, hidden by her tendency to gossip. She was not all that friendly, but her acting skills made her appear to be. She was friends with a lot of the people from the other houses, and though most of them were not her favorite people, she put up with them to feed her enormous curiosity. She was a bit loose tongued, but also quite easy to push around with the right technique.

Cassidy Lestrange was the third female of the group. She was not the most attractive girl on earth, with her heavy eyebrows, thin eye lashes and large nose. The fact that her face was chiseled did not help her slightly obtuse physique to make up for her features. She was, however an asset to their group because she had that strange effect on people where one withering look, and balling her fists up, got them to do exactly what she wanted. But like all bullies she was a coward, also easy to push around when you communicated things to her the right way.

The boy next to Marina was called Thomas Shackelbolt. Most who knew him also knew he was a disappointment to his father. Thomas had no intentions of becoming an Auror and was a Slytherin. He had brown hair and blue-green eyes. His body was not muscular like Cassidy's but he was lithe. He was also a bit of a player and a show off to the bone. He had an attitude much like Chloe's but he was the opposite of loose tongued about anything that was important. He acted like he needed to make up for his fathers severe goody-goody attitude. And he was certainly making up for it. Anyone that called Thomas Shackelbolt a goody-goody was most likely drunk.

The largest boy in the group, Andrew Nott, was… plump putting it nicely. But he was muscular and one look of his hawk eyes tended to send third years and below fleeing at a run. He was, however not all that gifted in the area of academics. He needed tutoring, and with difficulty had passed so far. He had black hair which he often wore slicked back, and his eyes were a deep brown. His skin was tanned to the color of dark chocolate and he had thick eyebrows. He had a good sense of humor, and tended to get his way with the other students. He was also unusually talented at sketching.

Tobias Snape was one of the boys sitting, with his head in a book. He was bloody brilliant and passed each class with so much ease, he usually ended up bored most of the year. He also had a wicked sense of humor and an aptitude for thinking of plots and schemes. His favorite class was the one taught by his father, Potions. This meant that when in need their group called on Tobias. He was a quiet boy, and did not like talking to other teens unless it was to mercilessly taunt them. When it came to making fun of people, he was Marina's favorite companion. They had known each other from the cradle, and often shared glances with each other at idiotic comments made by other students, which led their whole group into fits of laughter.

The last boy in the compartment was William Goyle. Unlike his rather ape-like father, Will was the handsomest of the group. He was also full of himself and slightly egotistical. He had tanned skin, light brown/dark blonde hair and highlights from the sun. His eyes were deep sea green, and he worked out constantly. He was a player, but hid it by pretending to be shy. He and Marina, as well as Toby had grown up like brothers and sisters. When Will had gotten old enough to flirt he had practically practiced on Marina, who tended to roll her eyes and pretended to swoon. She was one of the only girls in the school who didn't and hadn't fallen for him at some point or another. She tended to bat her eyelashes, shriek, and swoon, then sit up and laugh.

Marina looked around and said, "Well? Did you all miss me?"

Toby only scoffed, while Will rolled his eyes. Chloe and Cassidy nodded and the other two boys grunted.

"I see some of us have decided to take the ape way of life…" she mused, smirking at Tom and Andrew, both of which protested feebly.

"What about ME! Am _I _missed?" demanded Toby in a haughty, demanding imitation of Marina. The others laughed and Marina scowled, which turned into a smirk.

"How sweet little Toby's learning how to imitate me. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, and everyone knows I'm a sucker for flattery." She said, tossing her blonde head. Chloe and Will both burst out laughing and Toby raised his nose indignantly into the air. Andrew bit his lip, trying with all his might not to laugh. Tom smiled smugly at Toby, as he was usually the one picked on. Not that it ever meant anything, but as a Slytherin, smugness came to him easily.

Marina Leaned forward, and opened her eyes wide. Her lower lip stuck into a pout and she batted her eyelashes, in a ridiculous way. "Have I hurt poor little Toby?" she simpered, before her mask melted away, and a sneer curled across her lips.

"Yes. I'm hurt beyond repair," sniffed the offended, before everyone laughed.

"I feel obliged to ask, please don't think I actually care, How was everyone's summer?" drawled Marina. After a laugh tales began to be told.

After an hour or so, Chloe turned to Marina and asked, "Where's Nicholas?"

"I don't know," she said with a sly smirk, and added, "but do _you_?"

Will and Toby cracked up, and Chloe's cheeks turned a bright red. "So I guessed right?" she said smirking at her friend. Chloe sniffed and turned, facing the window. Marina snickered and opened the compartment door. She stuck her head out into the corridor and yelled, "Oy, Nick!"

Not surprisingly, out of a compartment down the way, sauntered a boy with a crown of ashy blonde hair. He had the same nose, and eyes as Marina, but his body was toned and muscular. He wore tailored grey pants, and a button down shirt. His sweatshirt was on his arm and the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up. He grinned at his twin and sneered, "Are the others missing me?"

"Oh yeah, they're," she paused before adding, "Sobbing at your very absence."

"Sure they are…" he said and made to walk into the compartment. She grabbed his arm and said sharply in a voice used only when she needed something out of a person and they were being hesitant, "Why would Chloe care where you were?"

"Err, because I'm so hot, she can't resist?" he said in a doubtful, uncomfortable voice. Nothing kept Marina from what she wanted, and he was trying her nerves. She gave him a withering look, and turned on her heel. Before she walked into the compartment she hissed, "I'll find out, Nick and it better not be something I don't want to hear."

The other six looked up as the twins entered, Nick wearing an uncomfortable look, which quickly melted into his usual sneer as he saw the group. "Well, well, well. No ones died, so that's good." He said, and then added, "For you, but not me."

Marina smirked, before adding "And sadly all of those times in the lake you almost died and you didn't manage it," mournfully to Will. They might have fights or spats from time to time, but that didn't mean the world had to know. In fact most people thought Nick and Marina never fought and acted as a practiced pair.

Will shook his head and muttered something to Tom. "I heard that," said Marina haughtily, even though she hadn't.

"Well we didn't mean it," mumbled Tom looking fiercely at the window. She looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to go on so she could find out what she had supposedly heard. Her silence was obviously making him uncomfortable, and finally he added, "The bit about the, err… female dog."

"Forgiven," she said smugly and he tilted his head at her. "I didn't actually hear what you said, I just wanted to know," she clarified. Will groaned and Nick snickered. Cassidy pointed down the hall, "Here comes the cart. Anyone want anything?" she asked, clearly offering to pay. The others nodded and she scribbled down what the wanted on a spare bit of parchment. She stepped out and walked down to where the cart was. Several students hastily moved out of the way, and she got what she wanted, not even bothering with the line. She was friends with the son of the head of the Slytherin house and with the two prefects of their years.

The Lady that pushed the cart brightly greeted her and Cassidy got a longsuffering expression on her face. She handed the lady the list and a fist full of silver. She snatched up the food and stalked back towards the compartment.

On her way she 'accidentally' slammed a little second year into the wall. For a moment it was unclear why, until a yellow and black scarf became visible; a Hufflepuff.

Marina imitated the poor third years terrified expression and the compartment exploded with laughter, as Cassidy walked in with the pile of food. She raised a thick eyebrow, before handing the food to everyone. Suddenly a group of four approached. A Ravenclaw and three Gryffindor's.

Rosemary Weasly led the way, her step almost confident. She was the only one of her family not placed in Gryffindor, and was a Ravenclaw. James Potter followed, his step a little nervous. He was in the year below them and never felt comfortable with his older friends. Adrian Longbottom followed them, his eyes dreamy and his brown hair wispy. He was clumsy and tended not to notice the world around him. He was also a deadly coward. Septime (Sept-eem) Sloper was also with them, looking a bit grudgingly towards Rosemary.

"Well, well, well. It's our long lost friends. But where are Johnson and Davis? And we have two new additions. Potter finally found his legendary courage did he?" sneered Marina as soon as the group paused at the door. Toby scoffed, and Will sneered. Nick, Tom, and Andrew's lips curled almost simultaneously, while Chloe and Cassidy's faces became masks of disgust. A wickedly amused and sneering look was on Marinas face as she surveyed them.

"Got you wrapped around her finger, does she, Sloper? I thought you were more the commanding part, but then again some of us change." She said, and added with a sneer, "And some of us don't even change what they're wearing, do they Weasly?"

Septime gritted his teeth and pointedly looked away, but Rosemary's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean Malfoy?"

"I mean that you're obviously just looking to your boyfriend for support against the big bad Slytherin's," sneered Nick, right on cue.

"I wasn't asking you, I was asking Malfoy." Came the response from Rosemary, just before she realized what she had walked into.

"I am Malfoy," said the twins simultaneously. Some called the Slytherin house the snake pit for a reason.

Suddenly Toby said, "Now, now children, let our guests in…" he said and shepherded them in with the help of a few of Cassidy and Andrew's combined glares.

"Yes Father," chimed the twins and a snicker ran through the Slytherins.

Confused, James took a tentative step forward, and Marina waved her hand lazily at him. It was a dismissive wave, but her eyes were daring him to move forward. He timidly took another step towards where the Malfoy girl was draped in her chair. Suddenly Will said, "Boo." And the Potter boy almost fell backwards.

A pleased sneer passed over Marinas face.

"You can't do that. And we were sent here with a reason," blurted out Rosemary. James had scrambled back, behind Longbottom at this point, and was practically trembling.

"It was all fun and games, until you tell me what to do," said Marina with livid eyes, though her voice stayed chilly and nonchalant.

"But, you're a prefect. Your supposed to be like, nice, and a model student," said Potter, though his voice was filled with doubt.

"Well they had to choose one of us, and I was the best behaved. And the best," said Marina haughtily, pronouncing each word slowly as if she was telling a rather dim person something quite complex.

Potter mumbled something ineligible, but was cut into by Weasly who said, "That's why we're here. Terra Krum told us to come and get you. You're supposed to be in the prefect's compartment." She said to Thomas and Marina.

"Oh, and I thought this was the Dim People Liberation Front come to get sponsors for the idiots. I was going to add that no samples were needed," She scoffed and pranced out, with Thomas following at a swift walk.

"Marina?" asked Shackelbolt tentatively.

"Yes, Tom, that is indeed my name," she said, but turned her head slightly to look at him all the same.

"It's scary how bloody evil and calm you are sometimes." And with that, he opened the prefect's compartment door for her.


	2. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer: Some of the Characters, the places, and the basic details belong to JK Rowling.**

**Warnings for the chapter: Erm, well there is some launguage and some suggestive themes but thats it**

**NOte for the chapter: I put that Remus Lupin is the head master for now, but it might change, -nudge nudge, wink wink- , so yeah. I thouhgt since he was goos wiht kids, in the order, ECT.**

**Chapter Two: If you're bored and you know it, insult the Hufflepuffs**

"Can we go now?" asked Shackelbolt in a desperately bored voice.

Krum looked a little shocked someone would talk back to her, but Thomas was looking smug. His comment had earned himself a pleased smirk from Marina who hadn't even really been listening to the ugly head girls rants. Uncertaintly Krum nodded, her swallow face slightly angry.

"Come on Thomas before the other little goody two shoes tell on us," said Marina, as if it would be the worst thing in the world. Ally Crabbe, the seventh year prefect, scoffed and followed them, tailed by Sean Proudfoot, the other prefect for Slytherins seventh year.

The fifth year prefects, looking pained, stayed in their seats.

"Well this is where we part. You're off the hang out with the Ravenclaws, I suppose," sneered Marina and sauntered away from the seventh years. Tom ambled after her, laughing. Marina dramatically opened the door and fell inside landing across Nick and (to his delight) Andrew. She sat up and sprawled out on her seat once more.

"I barley made it back alive. You think that someone with a famous dad would be interesting, but if Krum says a single word more about responsibilities I will personally send you all after her, then sit back and laugh," she said with a wicked grin.

"The threat is… painfully hilarious," said Toby sarcastically and then pointed to the front page of the post. "Terrance is back," he said, rolling his eyes at the photo of a wizard that stuck his tongue out at the reader.

"Will that boy ever leave his father alone? For once?" asked Marina in an exasperated tone.

The others shook their head disapprovingly and the conversation turned to gossip and Quidditch.

"Curse it, it's raining," moaned Chloe, looking grudgingly at the sky.

"But I doubt giving the sky a death glare will help much," observed Marina, not doing her duty of opening the carriage doors. As soon as the carriages that weren't pulled by anyone or anything came by, Marina and Chloe leaped into the first one, trying to get away from the rain and mud. Thomas, Will and Nick and

Toby came next, with Andrew and Cassidy bringing up the rear.

"Are we being a little vain?" suggested Toby in an innocent voice to the two girls.

"Yes you are, aren't you?" agreed Marina giving him a smug and obstinate smile.

"Hee hee. I'm laughing," retorted Toby. Marina only smirked at him smugly.

"I heard that the Fawcett's kid is coming to Hogwarts. Maybe he'll be in

Slytherin," said Andrew, squinting to see if the rain had let up outside. It hadn't.

"Maybe. His parents never took sides." Toby said, huddling in his seat.

"Yeah, and since we apparently didn't either, that's good," sneered Nick, while the other snickered.

"Well, well, well. We're home!" purred Marina sarcastically as the castle came into view.

"Can we hurry it up? I'm hungry," whined Will, as the sorting was halfway through.

"Oh yeah, all the rest of you firsties just go hide in a hole so Will can eat," retorted Marina, and Nick added, "Then when Will's ravenous hunger is satisfied you can come and be in Hufflepuff." He said the word Hufflepuff like some muggles might say the word hobo.

The entire Slytherin table erupted in laughter, as another Hufflepuff was ironically chosen. Toby said, his voice perfectly audible, "And as always the hats song is something like, if you're a dunderhead you belong in Hufflepuff! If you're a little perfect, brave, wonderful, courageous child go to Gryffindor! If you're a goody two shoes, but you're a coward and can pass for smart go to Ravenclaw! And if you're an evil little bitch or bastard then you can go to Slytherin! You'll fit in because they're all death eaters in training!"

He said it in a singsong voice, and one again the Slytherin house broke into sneers and laughs. They, unlike the other houses were unified, and if darkly, they helped each other. It also helped them that they all listened when someone was talking. As a group, yes the Slytherins may have been rather nasty, but once a Slytherin always a Slytherin. And they were the hose that was hated by all, so if you made an enemy of your house and you were a Slytherin then you were a universally hated person. The thing the other houses did not like to admit was that if you were a Slytherin you demanded respect, and everyone revered you if in grudging, hating kind of way. It usually didn't strike you until you saw that as a Slytherin first year you were untouched by the older kids, and if you were, then the entire house backed you. Other first years were picked on by everyone, and the Slytherin younglings could tease whoever they pleased because the entire snake pit would fight with them and for them. Even if many did so grudgingly, it was one of the things demanded to be in the Slytherin house.

So far in the sorting zero students had been placed into Slytherin, though one Ravenclaw had looked longing when the Slytherin house had laughed. Finally, the first one was called.

"Fawcett, Michael."

"Slytherin!" called the hat as the boy placed it on his head.

The strawberry blonde boy had looked satisfied and had trotted over to sit and the end of the table nearest to the head table. A chorus of greetings flowed over him, and he almost basked in the envious looks of other already sorted first years, whose houses had merely cheered, but not greeted them.

The next was also a Slytherin.

"Flasten, Caroline."

The hat had sat on her head for a full two minutes before it screeched that this was a Slytherin child. Jonathan Proudfoot (brother of Alexander Proudfoot), Mark Depont, Andromeda Parkinson, Tristan Ollivander, and Rachel Crabbe were also sorted into Slytherin. Finally one of the fifth years, Philip Zabini's younger brother Eric Zabini was sorted into Slytherin. Then the Head master rose to speak. As was customary, not a single Slytherin was listening. The tradition was explained to the first years as his speech went on to prevent them form listening anyhow.

And finally Will's dream came true and the food appeared. Will grinned at the food and dug in. After a few bites of a piece of chicken and some potatoes, Marina stopped. She was saving a little room for dessert, but it was also her duty to grill the first years. It wasn't tradition or anything, it was just something that was now assumed would happen. And it always did.

She leaned forward towards on of the girls, Caroline. The girl was giggling about soothing but she must have sensed Marina because she turned and looked a little frightened. "Hello. I'm Marina Malfoy," she said, with a cool smile, holding out her hand. The girl shook her hand a little nervously, and jumped slightly when Nick leaned over as well.

"Don't worry, we don't usually bite," he said, his voice a bit of a hiss. The girl laughed a little nervously, but she was clearly determined not to make a fool of herself. "I'm Nick Malfoy," he said, but his hands stayed under the table.

"So, who are you?" asked Marina, her eyes dangerous, just to scare the girl.

"Err, I'm Caroline Flasten," the girl mumbled, her eyes down.

"Don't mumble. I didn't catch that," she said, her voice dripping with venomous honey.

"Caroline Flasten," the girl repeated, lifting her head and speaking clearly.

"Better. Now are you all listening?" she asked, eyeing the other first years. They nodded, for the most part calmer now that they saw she wasn't going to kill them.

"I'm Marina Malfoy, and I'm a Prefect. The common rooms and dormitories are in the Dungeons, on the other side of them than Snape's class room. The password is arsenic. Tell anyone and bad things will happen. Now, after dessert you are going to form a civilized line behind the rest of us and we'll all go down together. The House of Slytherin demands Respect and your only allowed to act like fools in the common room. In public you represent your families, Salazar Slytherin, and us. So behave," she said, making sure to look them each in the eye with her glare.

"Any questions? I'm the other Prefect, Thomas Shackelbolt," said Tom, cutting in.

"No? Good. Now just remember the rules and we can be… almost friends," said Marina giving them a sweet smile enhanced by her veela blood.

Right on cue the dinner disappeared and the dessert appeared. Marina spent the rest of dinner making jokes, sneering, and making fun of people, and basically enjoying herself. As Head master, Remus Lupin's parting words were said, the Slytherins rose as one, and silently formed a line. They walked at a bit of a slow pace, but they looked like well mannered adults compared to the throng of the other three houses that were yelling, running and shoving each other.

When they reached the common room, the demeanor changed with such a tight u-turn that it was as if an explosion had taken place.

Some one put a record on the machine and a wizarding song blasted. People where chattering, collapsing on couches, and playing uncivilized games.

Marina sprawled out onto one of the black leather chaise. Two boys sat on either side of her. They were Nick and Will's twin friends, Nathaniel and Samuel. Or Sam and Nat.

"Hello Marina," said Sam.

"Have a good summer?" asked Nat.

"And more importantly, did you miss us?" added Sam.

She laughed and slung her arms around their shoulders. "Of course I did, I couldn't live without you," she said.

"Oh good, we were worried some muggle had pulled you away from us," said Nat, his eye mockingly worried.

The twins had dark hair and ivory skin with navy blue eyes. They were tall, and while not muscular, lithe.

"Some muggle? Now I'm hurt," sniffed Marina tossing her pale blonde hair, and pulling her arms to her sides.

"Awww, that's so sad," Sam sing-songed, putting one arm around her waist.

"But we did have a right you know," said Nat, putting his own arm around her waist as well.

"Of course, we are allowed to be worried, aren't we?" chimed Sam, as Marina laughed. She rolled her eyes, and pulled their arms off of herself. These two, along with Will and Nick flirted with anything that moved, relatives uncounted. So she was at least safe from Nick. But that left the other three, which was pretty bad in itself.

She got up, and trotted over to where Nick was busily flirting with three girls at the same time. She perched herself onto the arm of his chair and snorted with mirth as two of the girls looked sour. Chloe, being the third only looked away, slightly red. "Have I introduced my sister Marina to you all?" he asked to the girls. The pair of them, being fourth years, suddenly made the connection between the oddly similar pair that went everywhere together. They brightened up as they saw she was not threat to their precious little Nick who would be bored with flirting with them before the week was over. But they had to find that out the hard way.

Satisfied that she had caused some discord for a moment there, she went off to find better people to make life difficult for.

Finally at two o'clock in the morning she remembered the annoying fact that she had classes the next day, well later that day, and went off to her bedroom.

As she walked up the girls' dormitories passage, then turned into the sixth year's corridor. She found the bit of blank wall with her name written on it in neat silver ink. She tested her password out, and was pleased when the stone opened into the room that was so familiar to her. She had to armchairs and a couch, all green velvet, and her wooden desk. Her bed was a canopy bed with thick drapes to keep the dungeons cold out. Her trunk had been unpacked into the dressing room/closet and her Eagle Owl opened one eye and hooted sleepily. Her silver cat leaped up onto her bed and fixed her with its ice blue eyes. She changed into her nightclothes, and soon drifted off to sleep.


	3. Chapter Three

**Diclaimer: The surnames, and some of the characters, not to mention the surrounding bleong to JK Rowling, i'm just borrowing them.**

**Note: Sorry it took so long, im already wroking on the next one. And if you dont like fluff, the next one isnt, and the fifth one is like a definite not fluff**

**Warnings: Language and suggestive behavior**

**Chapter Three: Nobody Likes You**

Marina sat up in bed, and yawned. Her cat, Venom, watched her from where he was perched on the edge of her bed. She moaned, and threw a pillow at him, realizing it was his hiss that had woken her up. He dodged the flying object skillfully and narrowed his eyes.

"Alright, I'm up, I'm up! Happy, you good for nothing, filthy, horrid excuse for a cat?" asked Marina crossly. Once she was up she couldn't go back to sleep, so she finally braved the freezing stone floor. She pulled on a pair of slippers and walked over to her dressing room. She pulled out a pair of form fitting muggle pants. They were made of denim, but were wizard made. The little wand and lipstick crossed crest that appeared on the back pocket was evidence of it. She also put on a blue, collared shirt. She left it all the way unbuttoned to show her form hugging, white tank top. She carefully rolled up the sleeves of the shirt half way, and buttoned them that way. Then she pulled on a pair of clogs, and went out into her room to dig up a brush.

While she finding her school books, a knock sounded on the door. She hissed something to the guardian snake in parseltounge and the stone wall slid open.

She glanced up and saw a throng of Slytherins.

"Taking your time, aren't you?" quipped Toby, leading the group into her room to where they all settled on the various places there were to sit.

"Oh, but I knew you all would come get me, so what was the point?" she said, smirking at him in a good nature.

Nick, Will, Sam, Nat, Andrew, Tom, Toby, Cassidy, Chloe were the sixth years present. Surprisingly enough two fifth years and some seventh years were also present. Alexander Proudfoot and Philip Zabini were the fifth years. Matthew Misako, Cristian Tambel, Lydia Canterbury, Elizabeth Rockwood, and Michelle Foreman were the seventh years that were present.

"Wow, it seems my entourage has greatened in its numbers," observed Marina mildly, as she tugged her bag out of her trunk. It was a deep green messenger bag with silver threads and the Slytherin snake stamped onto the leather flap cover. Shoving her books roughly into the bag, she noticed that Sam and Nat were not speaking to each other. Vaguely she wondered why, before she picked up the bag and straightened.

"Let's go?" she asked, tucking her ebony wand into her bag.

"Finally, I thought you'd never get to it. Some of us have to eat you know," said Will, looking at her sourly.

"Some of us only think about our stomachs, eh?" said Toby, and Marina smirked.

"Come on already," whined Nick, apparently also ready to feed his bottomless pit of a stomach.

"Fine, but only because you asked so nicely," sneered Marina and stalked out, knowing the others would follow. The flurry of movement from her quarters told her that they were obliging.

"What's going on in the world?" asked Chloe, leaning over a little farther than necessary across the table to Nick. Marina caught the other girl's eye and raised a brow, smirking wickedly as the other girl flushed.

"Nothing much at the moment," said Nick, not looking up. He was reading something about quidditch, and wasn't really listening.

"Yeah, nothing is happening and nothing will," hissed Marina, smirking at the other girl pointedly. Chloe turned her nose away indignantly, while Alex, Toby, Will, and the twins laughed.

Sam and Nat weren't sitting next to each other, as was usual, nor were they speaking or even looking at each other. Marina poked Nick and hissed something about it into his ear, but her twin just shook his head unhelpfully. She made two mental notes.

One, to find out what was up, and Two, not to help Nick with his homework tonight. Or Chloe, until both of them told her what she wanted to hear.

As Marina was on her way to her first class, Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid, and his new apprentice and son Charlie, she spotted something in the side of her vision. She stopped, and the others halted too.

"What?" complained Toby.

'_Hold Your Tongue,'_ hissed Marina in Parsletonuge.

'_What?'_ replied Nick, also in the ancient snake language.

'_Ooh, What Fun,' _Toby practically crowed. Nick followed their gaze to a faint scene down by the cabin where the teacher lived. Four massive creatures were rearing and breathing fire while Gryffindor's and Hufflepuffs alike lunged form side to side, trying not be consumed in flames. The entire Slytherin party, other than the three snake speakers, was looking bewildered.

"What? In English?" said Nat poking Marina on the shoulder. Nick and Marina had always been able to speak Parsletonuge, and Toby had aswell. The two potters were able to, but with a lot of difficulty.

"Oh, I think our class is on fire," said Marina, vaguely flapping her hand in the direction of the billowing smoke. A bout of snickers arose from the group at the site of the fire things setting fire to the class.

"Lets take our time, shall we?" drawled Will.

"Oh, so you'll eat food, but you don't want to be food? Those things probably have to eat too, you know," said Sam sweetly, in an imitation of Chloe, who turned red.

"Yeah, I'm too sexy to eat though," retorted Will, striking a pose.

"Quick! My camera!" squealed Marina, as she and Cassidy began 'taking pictures' of Will.

"Anyway, let's go. Keep it slow though," said Thomas, rolling his eyes. The whole group moved forward at a rather lazy walk.

Eventually, they had to get there, however. After all, there was only so much time one could spend walking three hundred feet. Once they were within fifty of the fire things, the whole group stopped.

The creatures were massive cats. They were about sixteen feet to the shoulder, with huge ivory sabers as teeth. They were black with white eyes that had black pupils. On closer look, they were not bald, but scaled. They had snake like tails, and were shooting flames at anything that moved.

"Have we come at a bad time?" drawled Marina in an ice cold voice. By that time the students were huddled on a spot only slightly in front of where the Slytherins stood. Hagrid spun around, his grey beard on fire. He said nothing, but opened his mouth too. One of the massive leopards swatted at him with its paw, knocking him over, just in time to stop him from doing anything stupid. Which was pretty much anything he did.

'_I Wonder, Does It Speak Like We Do?_' hissed Toby.

Before either could answer, one of the four fire cats looked at them. Its white eyes were slowly becoming a pale green color. It trotted over to them, and Hagrid jumped to stop it. It picked him up and flung him into the air. The smallest of the three cats leaped up and snatched him up in its mouth. It tossed him up, and caught him again, looking a lot like a kitten with a ball of yarn.

The one that was walking towards them, paused, and lowered its head, so the eyes were only two feet above Marinas head. She looked up at it and hissed,_ 'Do You?' _

The cat stared at her puzzled, then responded haughtily_, 'I Am Not An It. I Am A She.'_

Nick snorted, and then muttered something ineligible to the ear. Marina looked at him, an eyebrow raised._ 'Sorry,'_ replied Toby, shooting the Malfoy twins a dirty look.

The cat snorted as well, but nodded. It squinted at them, then asked, in its rumbling voice, _'How Is It That You Speak, But The Others Cannot? Are Only Three Of You Humans Able To Speak?'_

'_We're Just Special,'_ retorted Nick, and the cat let out a thunderous purr of laughter. The other three cats turned, and padded over too where the original cat was crouching.

'_What Is So Funny, Pray Tell?'_ asked the largest of them all. Its eyes were also slowly fading from white to blue.

'_These Three Humans Speak To Us Like The Snakes Do,'_ said the original one, amazed.

'_Don't Lie. Of Course They Can't,'_ said the largest one, in an annoyed voice.

'_Oh? Then What Am I Doing Now? Sleeping I Suppose,'_ said Marina, in a haughty voice.

The cats all turned to stare at her. She looked at them nonchalantly, and tossed her hair over her shoulder. The cats continued to stare.

'_Its Rude To Stare, You Know,'_ said Toby, in a singsong hiss. The cats looked at him, a bit bewildered now.

'_I Can Talk To You Too,_' whined Nick, feeling left out.

"Uh, translation please?" complained Cassidy

"They speak Parsletonuge. It's pretty cool," said Nick as if he was explaining something easy to understand to a very dim person.

At this point, all four scaly cats were crouched around Marina and Toby. Nick had trotted out of the circle, to talk to the others and explain. Almost as soon as Hagrid opened his mouth yet again, a pair of stunning spells shot at the cats. The spells bounced easily of their scaly hides, but the cats reared and hissed. They then gave bloodcurdling yowls, and opened their fiery wrath on the pair of Gryffindor's that had done it. It was a pair of Wesley's, as could be predicted. Marina sauntered over to them, and said in an icy hiss, "Normally when something isn't attacking you, you don't attack it. Unless of course it's bigger, and more dangerous than you." On the last sentence her voice had dripped with sarcasm.

The largest of the cats snarled, and snatched up Melanie Diggory, one of the Hufflepuffs. She shrieked, but the cat bounded away, and leaped into the air. It didn't fly, but it outstretched its claws and caught the air in its claws. The paused on the invisible surface and leaped upwards again. Then it trotted along the air at a leisurely pace, before dropping gracefully into the center of the forbidden forest. The trees masked Diggory's screams and hid the cat from view. The others immediately leaped up after the big cat.

"Smooth. You all just got a Hufflepuff lost. And she was taken but a venomous, meat-eating pack of big cats. Good for you," drawled Marina. The two redhead's eyes were wide, and Hagrid took off running too the forest with his kid on his heels.

"Oh no. It seems class is dismissed, what a pity," sneered Toby, and they all turned to leave. They walked slowly, allowing the other two houses to move in front of them. The two spell shooting Weasly's were the last ones in front of the Slytherins, not a good place to be. Marina flicked her head at them, and Andrew and Cassidy grinned. They understood exactly what she was asking them to do. Their pace quickened a little, until they were walking ever so slightly in front of the pair. Then they closed in, in front of them. The pair of Gryffindors smilled tightly, and tried to push past them.

"Going anywhere, Weasly?" asked Chloe sweetly, her eyes dangerously honyed.

These two particular Weasly's were twins. A pair of boys, each with red hair, and blue green eyes. They were short and stocky, and appeared to be ever so slightly afraid.

"Come, answer her now, don't be rude," sing songed Thomas.

"Weren't you taught manners?" asked Nat eyeing them suspiciously.

"Its hard with millions of children in rags; to tell them apart," said Toby in a falsely chiding tone.

"Yes, leave the little poor kids alone, children," said Sam.

"Oh, put no one likes them, its okay," purred Marina. She saw how they flinched when she said it, and glanced at Nick.

"Yeah, isn't that right? Nobody likes you," said Nick, right on cue, annunciating every syllable.

"Poor babies," crooned Will sarcastically.

"It's true though, didn't you see how even Hagrid ran? And he likes everything! Even flobberworms. But not Weasly twins," Tom said, a sneer plastered to his face.

"Who would?" asked Chloe, her lip curling.

"Nobody likes you," said Marina one last time, and then she stalked away, with a group of snickering, sneering Slytherins in tow.


	4. Chapter Four

**Disclaimer: the characters, well some of them, some plots and minor detail, and large details are not mine, they belong to JK Rowling.**

**Warnings: Erm, language, suggestiveness, and that's about it.**

**Authors Note: Thanks to all you reviewers and thanks to the special someone whose helping with major plot decisions. Oh, and sorry this one took so long. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Four: Dirty Little Secrets**

"Marina!" called a tousle-haired blonde boy. He walked up to her and asked, "You going out for Quidditch this year? We need you, you know."

"Well, I am a sucker for flattery… alright," she said hesitantly, even though she would have gone if he hadn't asked.

"Thanks," he said, smiling at her with relief. He was Tristan Ollivander, grandson of the old coot that made wands in diagon alley.

She flapped her hand, and then went to get dressed for Quidditch.

As she walked down the dungeon corridor, she heard a loud shriek. She turned to find Chloe, looking horribly worried, bursting out of one of the broom cupboards. Chloe turned a shade of pink, and smiled weakly.

"Hi?" Chloe said lamely, in an almost hopeful way.

"Hi. Having a nice time?" asked Marina sweetly.

"Err, yeah, I guess," said Chloe uncomfortably.

"Your lucky, Chloe Black. I have somewhere to be, but I have a strange hunch that I know exactly what I would find if I looked in that cupboard," she said pointedly, and turned on her heel.

When she reached her room, she was fuming. How could Chloe go around with her brother like a slut? And how could Nick let her? That was just… nasty. Nick had to stop, and Marina was pissed. Her twin hadn't uttered a word, or she wouldn't mind, but he hadn't. And neither had Chloe.

She shook her head to clear it, and put her hair up into tight French braids against the wind. She pulled on the tight canvas pants, and laced all the laces on them. She pulled on an under shirt, before donning the green shirt with her name on it. She put on her shoulder pads, and put on the arm pads. Her hands were jammed into the fingerless leather gloves, and she pulled on her thin, leather, lace up Quidditch boots. She grabbed her dark colored broom, and looked herself over in the mirror, satisfied. Her green shirt accented the green in her eyes, and the white pants hugged her agile legs. She turned and trotted off to the quidditch pitch. Her shirt didn't have her name in silver, only in white, as this was her practice jersey.

"Now, all seven of you, try and score on me," said Tristan, looking bored. He had chosen the same seeker and beaters as last year, and himself as keeper. He had Picked Marina, and six others to try out for the final decision on chasers. She hoped the other two would be Proudfoot and Canterbury, like last year. Finally it was Marinas turn. She took the brilliant red ball in her gloved hand and sped towards the left goal post. He darted in front of her, but she pivoted to aim at the right goal hoop. He shot across again, and she tossed it into the left one. He darted to catch it, but it went through. She easily caught it again, and soared towards the middle hoop. She braked and pelted it towards the hoop. She had used all of her strength, and the quaffle went whistling through his hands, and dead into the hoop. Her third one was caught by him, but the fourth one went in unmarred.

"Alright, gather around. I've decided. Malfoy, Proudfoot and Macnair, you'll be our Chasers. Practice is on Tuesday's, Thursday's, and Sunday's. Don't miss them," said Ollivander, before he turned around, and walked into the showers. Marina grinned at Proudfoot in a way that she only did in Quidditch. She smiled at Macnair, but inwardly sighed. She had worked quite well Canterbury, and had only talked to Macnair once. But she would just have to deal.

As she undressed, Marina yawned. The prefect's bathroom was quite warm, and she was sweaty and tired. She flipped on a few random taps, and trotted over to where the showers were. She shut the shower door, and turned it on. She let the steaming water run over her, and she rinsed her hair with shampoo and conditioner. Then she pulled on a bathing suit, and wandered back into the main bath. This was a special swim suit, only used in the bathes. Two years before Marina had come to Hogwarts, they had issued the rule that nude bathing was not allowed in the co-ed bathrooms anymore. No one would have paid attention, but the two caretakers, Filch and the younger woman, Taint, had an annoying habit of popping in every now and then to make sure no one was breaking that rule. An ongoing joke had been that since most of the sixth year of Slytherin used the bathroom anyway, that the school had realized Sam, Will, Nick, Nat, and Tom were coming.

She lounged in the pool for quite some time, until she decided it was homework time. Grudgingly she got out, and pulled on a thick green robe.

As she walked past the Charms classroom, she heard some yelling.

"-could you!"

"How could I not? You do!"

"But! You could have told me!"

"We weren't talking, remember?"

"There's someone at the door," one of the voices said suddenly. They sounded vaguely familiar, but Marina couldn't place them. Then she scrambled away, up the staircase. She ducked into the transfiguration classroom. She waited for almost half an hour, wondering if they were gone yet. Who had it been? What had they been talking about? She shivered, and though 'screw them, I'm leaving,' before trotting down to the dungeons.

"I'm tired," announced Marian as she sauntered into the common room, clean.

"And wet," retorted Sam, looking up from his arithmancy homework.

"Where have you been? Some of us need help, and Toby is possibly the least patient person I have ever met. And he use words a mile long," complained Nat, doing the same homework. Tom and Chloe were also looking at her hopefully, but Nick and Will were doing their best not to crack up.

Marina eyed them warily, and went to get her bag. And clothes other than thee bathing robe she was wearing.

Back in the common room, she heard Nick laughing and Sam sputtering. She stalked back into the stone room to find Nat and Sam glowering at Nick and Will who were laughing helplessly. She raised a brow and said, "Shall we start with arithmancy? Or are you going to laugh without me some more?"

Will immediately sobered, and handed over his blank chart.

"You've made an amazing amount of progress," she said dryly.

Toby rolled his eyes from the other couch where he was sitting reading. He was done with his homework, and Marina shot him a glare. He smiled smugly at her, and she threw a balled up chunk of paper at him. It bounced off his head, and didn't hurt him, but all the same he looked at her sourly.

"Want to do my potions essay?" she asked, looking at him. She never pleaded, but he always did it. He shook his head, and grumbled, but held out his hand for the blank parchment. She smiled at him, and then turned back to the charts.

"Okay. Now we all set it up. Then multiply, and subtract. And please don't forget to carry the four…" she began.

"Okay. So we've done charms, arithmancy, history of magic, potions, well at least I have, and transfiguration. Oh, and we did divination, even if it was in our own special way, and astronomy. And what else have we got? Not care of magical creatures, that's for sure," smirked Marina, after three or four interminable hours. Homework was actually rather fun when your whole house did it. Plus that was how Slytherin had so many inside jokes.

"Um, nothing else. And now we have dinner. Yum," said Chloe brightening up, and getting up to wash her hands under one of the stone fountains in the common room.

"Oh, and I've got Quidditch tomorrow, so wait to start homework," she said, knowing they would. Toby, Nick, Marina, and the twins were all on the team. Sam was the seeker, Toby and Nat were the beaters, and Nick was a backup, and he went to all the practices. Marina was back up keeper and seeker, and Nick was back up chaser and beater.

Tristan and Proudfoot nodded. The other boy, the new one, Macnair was also nodding hesitantly. He was a third year and the youngest player by far.

"Well, it's not like we could start without you. Marina, Toby, Tristan, Proudfoot, all the geniuses gone, and you think we'll do our homework? Riiight,"' sneered Will.

"The teachers would be astounded by your responsibility," said Marina dryly, earning herself laughs from over half the common room.

"I'm hungry," whined Will, taking a leap to another subject.

"You always are," sighed Chloe, sitting back down, among the thick books her teachers forced on her.

"Oy! Firsties! And the rest of you midgets! Form a line," called Tom waving his hand towards the blank wall that would become the door. When they hesitated Will stood up.

"MIDGETS! LINE! NOW! Some of us are hungry you know," he roared, and the smiled sheepishly as Marina, Chloe, and Andromeda burst out laughing.

"Yeah, gosh midgets," said Nick playfully offended.

When the Slytherin house had finally reached the dinner table, they had calmed down a little. Enough to act like civilized people, that is.

As soon as dinner was over, just before dessert, the headmaster, Remus Lupin rose.

"Ugh! Just before dessert too!" complained Nick looking mournfully at his empty plate.

"Poor baby!" crooned Marina, sneering. Sangres Snape, Toby's father, and head of Slytherin gave the entire table a chilling stare that ensued silence.

"The time has come for there to be a change in head masters," began the old werewolf, his gaze sweeping the room. "It is time for my old bones to rest in peace, and to have a change in headmasters. There were many people I could choose from, as my dear deputy headmaster has decided to retire in unison with myself. After some thought, to much though to be frank, I have settled on Gabrielle Delacour," he said, smiling at the woman sitting at the end of the table. She had taken over Transfiguration from the retiring McGonagall woman. She was also, not to mention, an aunt of Marina and Nick's. Her sister, Fleur, however had been recently disowned because of a certain marriage she had insisted on taking up. With a Weasly. To avoid being related to them in anyway, her father had warned her that if she accepted the engagement she would be disowned. Thinking that he would never do it, she accepted, finding herself kicked out of her wealthy family, and slumming it with the Weasly's of all the ungodly people she could choose.

The transfiguration teacher nodded and rose gracefully to her feet. She began to speak her voice throaty and flute like.

Marina began to examine her nails, until movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. She looked up sharply, and saw Chloe hurry down the hall, and away. Her head flicked over to her twins empty seat, and she got up as well, walking out into the hallway. She smirked knowingly, at the Gryffindor table. A Ravenclaw had been made headmistress, and the days of the dunces were over. She swept out of the hallway and whisked down the passage to the dungeons silently.

She stopped when she heard voices.

"Nick… why?" whiny voice that could only be an annoyed Chloe.

"Because. Come on, my sister would be pissed off if she knew we were going out, and also-" began Nick. But before he could finish the door swung open.

"Too late Nicholas. She's pissed. Oh you were right when you said she would be. So goddamn right," hissed Marina in a cool, venomous voice.

Nick stared at her shocked. Chloe watched her, her mouth open. Marina surveyed them and said nothing. She simply stared at them, her eyes dangerously pale.

If it was almost any other girl Marian might not be so angry. But Chloe was… a slut and too high for her brothers standards. That and the small fact that her father had gotten Marinas Grandfather in Azkaban for three years, until he had pleaded innocent under the imperious curse. It was a complete lie, of course, but getting out of Azkaban had been more important than his non-existent morale at the time.

Her eyes glittered silver and she spun on her heel. Some key things had been revealed that night, but was that all that was to come? Then there was the more important fact of whether Marina actually cared or not.

"What's up?" asked Sam, as Marina stalked back into the hall, indignant.

She was about to say something to him, when something clicked in her mind. Her eye narrowed as she thought about the anonymous conversation she had overheard. It sounded an awful lot like Nat and Sam; she had been thinking it was a person yelling at themselves. She gave him and inquiring look, before helping herself to some of Will's lemon pie.


	5. Chapter Five

**Disclaimer: the characters, well some of them, some plots and minor detail, and large details are not mine, they belong to JK Rowling.**

**Warnings: Erm, language, suggestiveness, and that's about it. Oh and violence!**

**Authors Note: Sorry about how long this all took. First I had a writers block. Then I had another little chat with mah special little helper. The sixth chapter is on the way!**

**Chapter **F**ive: 'R' is for Revenge and 'A' is for…**

**S**oon after that Chloe and Nick discovered what it was like to be ignored by their friends. Or, rather Marina glared the others into faithfully ignoring Nick and Chloe. Well, not Nicks much on the other boys' parts. And Cassidy probably talked to Chloe behind Marina's back. Not that Marina minded. Or at least she minded that they hadn't told her, but not that her friends were secretly talking to those filthy traitors. She had almost sent an owl to her parents but had then thought better of it.

Thomas had asked her why about twenty times before she snarled something , and hexed him into oblivion. After that they had left her alone for the day.

The next morning dawned a pale blue. As usual, Marina was awoken by a certain sorry excuse for a cat's angry hiss.

When she emerged into the common room she gave Chloe and Nick chilly sneers usually reserved for Gryffindor's. Chloe cringed uncomfortably, but Nick gave Marina a chilly smile. The pair stared at each other for a moment, stormy eyes blazing, before finally Marina stalked out, jerking her head. Nick followed her, and Chloe stirred, but didn't move. The twins walked in silence, eyes scorching the unfortunate first years that managed to stand in their way. Once outside, and across the lake Marina rounded on him.

"Do you know the reason our grandfather was in Azkaban? Have you any idea who almost killed our Great aunt? Whose godson almost killed our father? Or perhaps you have forgotten. Does the surname Black mean anything to you?" she snapped, her eyes narrowing dangerously. Her voice was soft, like an icy hiss.

"No. I've forgotten," retoreted her twin, his voice rough.

"I wouldn't be surprised if you had. Are we remembering the sluttiest girl that I have the unfortunate experience of being friends with is a Black? Therefore related to the Potters in a disconnected way. And what do you think our parents would have to say about it? And is she pureblood? Yes, but a Black none the less," snarled Marina, her eyes calm, yet hazardously ablaze.

"He was her uncle, and was disowned! And if disownment counts, then we're related to the Weasly's," he pointed out.

"Don't even say that. Oh, and did it ever strike you that I was your twin? Or did you forget that too?" she snapped, hitting a nerve that she knew would be raw for his entire life. Nick's mouth opened slightly and his eyes looked hurt.

"I didn't forget Mriss," he said softly, using the old nickname he had used for Marina. It was the word that sounded most like 'trouble' in Parsletonuge, and he had used until they were almost fourteen. She narrowed her eyes, but the smiled wryly.

"Fine. Forgiven on two conditions," she said, eyeing her twin smugly.

"O-Kay. What are they?" he said slowly, looking at her warily. He was growing, while she had stopped and was three inches taller than her. Yet, ever since they were small she had always been the bossy, in-charge one of the two, while he delightedly carried out the dirtier work.

"No more little secrets. And never say we're related to the Weasly's ever again," she said, smirking.

"You drive a hard bargain, Miss," he said, but shook her hand.

"Its settled then. Come on, lets go," she said, sauntering back up to the castle.

"Why? You're never hungry," said Nick, loping along side her.

"No, I have to first tell Chloe that I'm speaking to her again, and then I have to harass her for two months straight. Otherwise my reputation will die out," she informed him, smirking. He shook his head, then laughed, and gently shoved her. She smacked him lightly on the cheek, and he whimpered in apparent pain. She raised a brow, and he cracked up.

"Why, Marina?" whined Chloe looking doubtfully at the hissing and spitting lily in front of the. Marina was wearing her dragon hide gloves, and was pointing at the plant expectantly.

"Because. Do it," she said, smugly tossing her head.

"Or?" asked Chloe, wearing a pout. Marina raised a brow. "Right," said Chloe catching on. She picked up a piece of bloody meat and threw it at the plant, trying not to touch the blood. The lily snapped it up, and let a seed fly into the air, smacking the old professor Sprout in the head. The old woman frowned, and picked the large seed out of her hair, handing it to Chloe. Marina shuddered, glad that Chloe had been so… _eager _to help.

The girl smirked knowing at Chloe, and began her arithmancy homework. Chloe glared back and flung another piece of meat at the ravenous flower. For the rest of the day, and likely the rest of her sixth year at school, Chloe found herself acting as a dunce servant for Marina. Not that the entire Hufflepuff house didn't already yelp and do whatever she told them to do.

Finally the bossing of Chloe died down, and three weeks into the term, Chloe had already started going out with a Ravenclaw. Not the best choice out there, but certainly better than a Hufflepuff or Gryffindor.

At breakfast on October the second, Marina opened the newspaper. She glanced at the front page, something about a gangster or something, and moved on to a more interesting report. As she flipped past the job add section of the Prophet, she noticed that two pages were like, exactly the same. She scanned them and noticed one difference. The second one was hand drawn, and had one difference. The add read that an assassin was wanted for some man named Domingo.

Suspiciously, Marina flipped to the front of the Prophet and noticed once again that the name of the notorious gangster she had never heard of, Domingo, was Snape's right handed man. Not Sanger Snape, Toby's father, but Toby's uncle. The uncle that had taken over from The Dark Lord, when potter had managed to murder him at last. Now the ex-professor went about known as the Dark Prince.

"Oy, Nick, Can I borrow your Prophet?" asked Marina, carefully storing hers inside her school robes. Her twin nodded and handed it over, reaching for Marina's kippers and taking them. She looked at the cover, and saw it was the same as hers. She flipped to the add section, and saw that no such add had been included in his. She threw it back at him, and swirled her fork through her oatmeal thoughtfully. Who wanted her as an assassin? Of all people? She was a Malfoy and demanded respect.

When her granddad had been shipped of to jail, the respect for the name Malfoy had quavered, but the name had been feared. Then her father had almost murdered Dumbledore, and the respect had dropped even more. But the levels of fear had risen. Then a friend of the family, a healer, had checked both men over, and announced that they were obviously under the imperious curse. Of course that was ridiculously untrue, bur a grand respect returned once more. The fearfulness of others had not dropped in the least, but it helped that all of them were attractive. Marina's father, Draco had been recruited as a death eater at the age of sixteen, and had risen in the rank greatly. He had only risen farther and farther when Severus Snape had taken over, and renamed the workers of the darker side Bane's. Then he rose in status again, still quietly. No one had so much as suspected him. Well, most people hadn't. All of the Weasly family, what was left of the scattered order of the lovebird (or something like that), and the Potters all thought he was a Bane, but they didn't do much of anything about it. Then Draco Malfoy had married Artemis Carrows. For a long time he knew not why she looked rather different than her family, with her almost black hair and brilliant blue-green eyes. Then Mr. Carrow had told them both that she was indeed a Carrow, but the girl she had grown up thinking was her oldest sister (20 years difference) had been her mother. Her father had been some man named Riddle, or Puzzle or something of the sort. Marina had learned this while eavesdropping alone one night and quickly learned that this Riddle fellow had turned out to be the dark lord. Upon even more research, and questioning a certain old ghost, she had found out that her and Nick were the last in the line of Salazar Slytherin. Of course her mother was illegimate, but that unaffected fact that she was his daughter, a parselmouth, and a descendent of Salazar Slytherin. Making Nick and Marina also related to him, and parselmouths. However, the Carrows had agreed to severe all ties with the Malfoys. This was annoyingly unknown, but that was life.

This all, however interesting, still left the annoying fact that she was wanted as an assassin. She stirred her oatmeal around once more, then took a sip of Orange juice. Suddenly someone tapped her foot under the table, shaking her out of her thoughts. She looked up, but no one was watching hr. Andrew, Tom, Nick, and Will were talking about quidditch, while Chloe sulked as Cassidy laughed at her. Sam was glaring at Nat, and Nat was talking to Toby, with a nervous air about him. Tristan was busily flirting with Andromeda, while Proudfoot and Zabini argued over something stupid. Macnair was talking to some fourth years, and the rest of the house was eating. She raised a brow in the rest of the worlds general direction, and turned to where Cassidy had called her name.

"What?" she asked, sipping her juice, and reaching for a cookie.

"We were thinking of maybe going to the edge pf the lake to tan tomorrow. If its not to cold," Cassidy said.

Before Marina could answer, Chloe turned to them. "I wouldn't be able to go. Rob wants to go out with me. I don't even know where! What should-" she began.

"Want to know something funny? I don't care!" interrupted Marina in the same obnoxious, preppy tone Chloe had been using.

"God, some ones in a bad mood," snipped the Black girl.

"Your so friggin' observant sometimes Chloe. I don't know how you do it," sneered Marina.

"Will the pair of you shut the … frick up?" said Toby irritably. It was more directed at Chloe than Marina, because Marina was not one to be bossed around, but still.

"Well, I can't and Chloe can't so I doubt it would work this weekend. Maybe Sunday though," said Marina ignoring both Toby and Chloe.

"That'd be good, I'll let people know," said Andromeda.

"Girls, not boys Andromeda," said Marina eyeing the other girl suspiciously. Andromeda snorted indignantly and tossed her head.

That Saturday, Marina excused herself, saying that she had to go to hogs Meade. Being a prefect, she was allowed, and though her friends might have come, she didn't exactly notify them.

As she walked down the road, she pulled out the add again, reading once again that the meeting spot would be just behind the Hogs Head. She was even surprised that that old, ramshackle hut of a pub was still up and existing. She walked up the streets slowly, not even sure she wanted to know who exactly wanted her, and to do what.

She paused in front of the battered looking building and took a deep breathe. She strode behind the building, her most indifferent expression on. She glanced around, her eyes settling immediately on rough looking man. His hair was black, and his skin was pale, but with a healthy glow. He was clean, and his hair was combed. He wore denim pants and a white shirt, covered with a black dragon hide jacket. He had bright green eyes and looked oddly familiar.

"Soo. It's the little Malfoy girl. You're the quicker of the two, I hear. Never getting in trouble for all those nasty things you do to others, eh?" he laughed. His voice was odd. It could neither be classified as a high or low, despite its rasping hoarse tone. It almost sounded as if he were a cross between a cat and a dog, hissing and growling in the same syllable.

Marina said nothing, just raised a pale brow. How did this bastard know who she was, or what she did or didn't do. Her gaze was challenging and her mouth twisted into a skeptical sneer. "I don't suppose you know who you're talking to then?" she asked in a cold almost disgustedly indifferent tone.

"Of course I do. Marina Cypress Malfoy. But you don't know who I am, eh little niece?" he said, after giving a short bark of laughter.

"First of all, its creepy that you of all people know my full name. Secondly I am not little, though my waist is in comparison to yours. And third of all, I'm not your niece, happily enough for me," she sneered. This man was getting annoying, and she wondered if he was even who she was supposed to meet.

The man let out another bark of laughter, his long dark hair shuffling in the wind. He opened his mouth, but was cut of by an impatient Malfoy.

"Enough with the niceties, who the fucking hell are you? Before you piss me off," snapped Marina irritably. She had endured enough of this man, and he was succeeding in doing what Nick and Chloe had achieved.

"Fine. I'm Domingo Gaunt, and you're Malfoy. You are the perfect subject for our necessities, so I hope you will cooperate," he said, taking a step towards her, with a menacing stride.

"Flattery will get you places, and since your being oh so complimenting… No. Sorry. I don't want to work for _you_," she sneered tossing her head hotly.

"Oh, if you were working for me, it would be all niceties, trust me. But you can't say no it would be… fatal," he said shortly.

"Oh? I beg to differ-" she began. But suddenly the man shoved her up against a wall. A dark sense of foreboding washed over her. It probably and something to do with the fact that a knife was being pressed lightly into the tender skin of her neck.


	6. Chapter Six

**Disclaimer: the characters, well some of them, some plots and minor detail, and large details are not mine, they belong to JK Rowling.**

**Warnings: Erm, language, and that's about it. Oh and Toby showing sentiment. -shudders-**

**Authors Note: Well, my writers block is over. But the title doesn't have all that much to do with the chapter yet. But it'll play out. And this is a bit of a short one. And two new main charries get introduced so be on the look out. Oh, and please review. I know, I know, its egotistical. But… PLEASE? Lol. Okay I was going to say something else… Right, this is a bit of just fluff and randomness, but it really is necessary. **

Chapter Six: Rhyme and Treason

"Differ? I don't think that would be very clever," said Domingo, his eyes flashing in a wild, dangerous manner. He had leapt at her throat so quickly, whipping a knife out of nowhere, and pressing the metal daintily into her skin, as if teasing her.

"Oh, very nice and convincing, but you know. I don't think. That I. Feel my. Opinion. Changing much," she said, her voice uneven as he pushed his elbow into the soft spot beneath her ribs.

_Levicorpus!_ She thought with an immense amount of force. Apparently she had taken him by surprise, because he dropped the knife and his body was lifted into the air.

"See? I told you to play nice," she said smugly. He glared at her, and reached for his wand.

"I don't think so," she simpered, casting the nonverbal summoning charm. His wand flew into her hands and she smirked at him.

Then he shocked her. He burst out laughing. "Alright girl, let me down, keep my wand and let me talk," he said, still roaring with laughter. Narrowing her grey eyes, she allowed him to crash into a heap in front of her feet.

"What now? Perhaps you'd like to move on to magic now? Or skip to the part where you decide how to kill me?" she asked, tauntingly twirling his wand in her fingers.

He didn't get up, but stayed sitting on the ground. When she snapped at him, he clenched and unclenched his fists, but a grimace of a smile stayed plastered onto his face.

"No. You have my wand. Now. To the talking bit," he said, pausing to make sure she wasn't going to fling him into the air again. When he saw that she settled against the wall, arms crossed skeptically, he grinned toothily at her.

"Right then. So. Your wanted. As an Assassin," he began ignoring her remark of, "Well, I gathered that bit, really." He went on apparently oblivious to her interjection. "So, I mean you're not really wanted. Well you are. But you've been drafted putting it nicely really. The Prince don't take well to rejections, hmm? Well anyways. Your pa said you never let him rest for a minute when you were younger. Always pushing your way into trouble, and then blaming others with such conviction he almost believed you every time. Anyways. Then there was that… thing you got yourself into last year. You proved yourself promising, so Tobias and your self were chosen. You'll report right to him. Now your mum really isn't pleased, and neither your father to be frank, but there you have it. So. You'll have to go and get your… feeble skills honed. Tobias already knows, and he was just about as happy as you look," the man said, his Scottish accent almost turning into a laugh as he saw her wicked smirk.

"Oh. I see, I suppose I really have a choice," she sighed, narrowing her eyes in spite of herself. Now an assassin. That would be fun, except for killing people.

"So do I actually kill people?" she asked airily, tossing his wand back to him.

"Nah, that's the real dirty work, not for assassins. That's for Body boys. You'll just help… convince some people that telling would really be their best option. Killing is left for a few, and your father would have all our blood in a breath if we even suggested. So I guess its really more of a spy thing, but assassin is your title," he sighed, reaching out and grabbing the ebony wand.

"These… 'lessons', when will they be? I do have to pass in school you know," she said haughtily.

"Once a week, sometimes twice. Now. You have to be marked as one of us. But the problem arose that the usual place is a bit stark obvious. So we have a proposal for you guinea pig assassins. Wouldn't it be nice if instead of branding you like pigs, we just put a nice little spell on you?" he asked sweetly.

"Frankly I'd rather not. How's about you just fuck off, and then I tell you its me and you believe me? There's a nice little plan," she simpered back, just as sweetly.

He scowled. "Think your so clever, eh girl? I don't think so. How's this feel?" he snarled, leaping forward, whipping his knife off the ground where it had been left to rest. This time however, Marina had been granted about half a second to gather her wits. She simply sidestepped, and snatched his knife out of his hands.

"Naughty, naughty," she sneered, nimbly jumping away from him. Though her tone was even, she wondered if he would go a bloody minute without attacking her.

He gaped at her for a moment, and then sat down on an empty box. "Fine. I'll calm down and play nice with the others," he snarled half heartedly.

"Good little bastard," she purred with an acid undertone.

"Alright. So I was saying, the brand. Nah, we're not going to mar your precious veela skin, or whatever. We've got a brand that only shows under the Prince's wand. No one else sees it. So, you gonna let us do it the nice way?" he asked, getting up.

She narrowed her eyes and inspected her fingernails. "Why would I do such a thing?" she asked in an uninterested tone.

He laughed again, and stepped towards her, extending his arm for his wand.

She grinned wolfishly at him, baring her teeth. "I don't think so. If anyone brands me its someone that cleaner. More pointedly only Toby's uncle," she said, flipping his wand to him.

He caught it and sighed. She half expected him to leap at her again, but he surprised her by holding out his arm.

"What? I'm not going to touch you," she said, looking disdainfully down at his offered arm. He grabbed her, and with a pop the pair disappeared.

Marina tossed her hair. She had just appeared at the crest of a huge hill. Tucked into the deep valley was an odd town. It looked as if it had started as a rural village, but then the population had grown. Once they could expand into the hills no more, the city had grown up wards, with houses perched on one another precariously. They had all stopped about halfway up the large hill, staying snugly pocketed in the dent in the earth.

A warm breeze blew past her, and she turned. She almost gasped, but didn't, when she saw the ocean line. She frowned, knowing they had apperated a long way.

"I can't be gone long, you know," she said, turning to her companion. He only rolled his eyes, and dragged her downwards towards the town.

"What is this place?" she asked, rolling her eyes back at him.

"Serpentia," he grunted.

She only grimaced in return. "Where the buggering hell are we?" she snapped. Being in some unknown town by a shoreline with a promising candidate to be the one to kill her was not reassuring. He roared with laughter, then towed her down the slope.

"Oh, you're being so specific. How do you manage it?" she asked sarcastically, her voice practically a hiss.

"Come on girl, the man has better things to do than sit around and wait for you," snarled the wizard, pulling her faster and faster.

"Well then why bother with me in the first place?" she snapped.

"Because I need some one, and you were almost ready made," said a cool voice. A man stood in front of them, at the corner of what seemed to be one of the three roads in the entire village. His hair was a greasy black, and his face was clean shaven. Age seemed to not have any effect on him, though he was as old as Marina's grandfather. His skin was a swallow color, and his eyes were a cold black. He was not tall, but held himself upright and that seemed to add to his height. His nose was hooked, but his teeth gleamed white, and his robes where new. This man was the man that had taken over the war against the ministry of magic, if rather forcibly, from one of the four greatest wizards of all time.

"Oh, I was a conveniently placed little girl that you were in great need of," she sneered.

"Yes actually, and though you are not all that young, I did need an adolescent," he said in a tone that suggested he was discussing goblin economies, or some other lethally dull subject.

"That was a really nicely done self esteem boost for me, thanks," she said dryly.

"Well done Domingo, off you go to get drunk or something," said the Prince, ignoring her completely.

"Come on then," he snapped to her, and set off, robes billowing dramatically.

He showed her where she would take her lessons, where she would have her lair, and where to apparate too. He also introduced her to the other three besides Toby that would be in her squad. He explained, if in a rather irritated tone, that she would work in a squad; two assassins, a body guard and a messenger. The body guard she would be working with was called Anthony Dolohov, and the messenger, though she wasn't sure what they did was named Angel. She had not been introduced with a last name, though she looked vaguely familiar. She had dark hair, pale skin, and blue eyes. Her chin was pointed, and her small nose was bleeding when they met. Though she fixed it with a wave of her wand, Marina still wondered how she had acquired a bloody nose. Dolohov had deep brown skin, a long face, and black hair. He was large, and his arms bulged with muscles.

She was shown her small apartment, or rather, was given directions. It seemed she was right when she had guessed that there were not a lot of roads, in face, only four ones existed. The roofs of houses were used as impromptu sidewalks, and once she finally found the place she was delighted. It was not huge, but had obviously been magically spelled to fit her needs. But then she remembered that she was needed at school. She snatched up the text book, disguised as an arithmancy text, and disaparated illegally back to school.

"Where have you been?" demanded Toby when he saw her walk down the dungeon corridor.

"Having a chat with some relatives of yours," she said coolly.

Instead or retorting, he grabbed her arm and dragged her along the passage way. They, well he walked and she was dragged, ended up on the seventh floor. He dragged her down a passage way and then began to retrace his steps. Then he went back down where they had gone, then they turned back, and to her great surprise, on a blank wall was an ebony door.

"What-' she began to demand, but he just shoved her roughly inside.

"What do you mean , you were chatting with my relatives?" he asked, his eyes narrowed.

"You know, people that are related to you? Really Toby, the concept's not that hard," she snapped. Being dragged all over the world by a murderer was something, but being shoved somewhere by a guy her age was not acceptable.

"I expect you know exactly who I'm talking about. Look at my new arithmancy book," she said, when said nothing. She shoved the book his uncle had given her at him. He only stared at her, holding the book dumbly in his hands. Then he hugged her.

"Wow, you're not alright are you?" she said. Toby had never been one of great affection, preferring just to call them by insulting pet names.

"My uncle had hinted he would be choosing a Hufflepuff! I didn't know whether he had been joking or not, thank god. At least you're brain works almost as fast as mine. Actually the other two are pretty damn fast thinkers too," he said, laughing.

She stared at him for another moment, before linking arms with him. "Well we're going to have to prove ourselves then, aren't we?"


	7. Chapter Seven

**Disclaimer: the characters, well some of them, some plots and minor detail, and large details are not mine, they belong to JK Rowling.**

**Warnings: Erm, language, Suggestiveness, Insults to Ravenclaws and Gryffindor's. That's about it.**

**Authors Note: Readerbabe: Well… maybe. Mysterycat: No you cannot have him. Readerbabe might have something to say if I introduce a random fanfi reviewer for him to fall in love with. And no, for the records Toby is for now single. Notice he is not ever drooling over Marina. Playing hard to get eh? Anyways… Sorry this one took so long, I really am. I'm starting another fanfic soon too! Yay! And that one had Draco in it! YIPEE! And… the next chapter is almost all done with being typed so yeah…. PLEASE REVIEW! I live off of you all's reviews! **

C**hapter **S**even: A Little More Than A Tan**

"Are you quite done yet?" asked Marina in a tired voice. She was dressed in a white zip up hoodie, and short denim shorts. Beneath those she wore a pale green bikini with silver hemming.

Chloe looked up from where she had been thoroughly searching her wardrobe for a suitable bathing suit. "Fine. I'll wear the red one," sighed the brunette, shooting the accused swimwear a sulky glare.

"Well? Get dressed!" snapped Andromeda, rolling her eyes. Chloe shot her a reproachful look, and stalked over to her closet, snatching up the accused bikini. Andromeda smirked for a moment and then straightened her white two piece with green stitches.

"What a Gryffindork," scoffed Marina, as Chloe emerged, in red. She sniffed then walked out, in what Chloe must have thought was a dignified silence. The other girls rolled their eyes at each other and then followed her, snatching up towels.

"Finally. And I was thinking maybe we weren't going anymore!" snorted Cassidy, along with half the Slytherin girls in Hogwarts at the present moment.

Once thay had reached the beach, Marina realized that something was very wrong. Well three things actually. One being that the beach, though pleasantly private, was surrounded completely by trees. On the edge of the forbidden forest; forbidden being the operative word there. The second thing was that if she was to bare her belly, however nice and delectable it was, she would be baring the small snake tattoo, that only glowed under a certain personage of unreal royalty's wand. The last, and final quandary was that it was blaringly obvious that Andromeda had invited boys. And what made it so painfully evident was that they were all in the water, in brightly colored trunks.

Marina warily eyed Andromeda for a moment before she sighed, crossing her arms in front of her. Her foot tapped on the soft sand, and she looked expectantly at Andromeda. The girl looked sheepish, and suspiciously nonchalant.

"Marina! Chloe! Finally we've been waiting all day for the real girls to get here," called Will, grinning at the catcalls his comment invoked. Chloe blushed, but Marina ignoered the boys completely. She gave Andromeda one final, half hearted death glare, before turning to them.

"Why? You all must have been hanging around here for at least an hour," she said sweetly, and there was a pause before any of them got it. Toby, who was sitting on the dock, reading and fully clothed snickered at them.

"Come on, the water's great," said Nick hopefully, ignoring his sisters comment.

"If we wanted to get wet, we would have taken showers," said Cassidy, as if pointing out the obvious. After the boys gave them a few laughably confused looks, Marina spread her towel out over the white sand. She contemplated for a moment, then unzipped her sweatshirt, and pulled off her shorts, still ignoring the other gender completely. Chloe, when she saw that Marina was doing so, immediately also began to stretch herself out, over the white towel.

"What are you all _doing?_" asked Tom, a bit warily.

"We're having a war. We're tanning you idiot, what does it look like we're doing?" sneered one of the fourth years, a blonde girl named Nicole.

"Nice tattoo, Marina. Dad's going to throw a fucking fit when he sees it," said Nick, crawling out of the water, and on to his sister's towel.

"No he won't, especially if he doesn't notice," said Marina, giving him a look as she propped herself up on her elbows. It was quite the site seeing Marina and Nick. Marina was sprawled out, propped up by her elbows. Her pale skin, which was heavily creamed against the sun (though you couldn't tell the cream was there) was accented by her light green swimwear. There was not an ounce of fat on her taut body, and her ash blonde hair spilled out over her shoulders. She had silver eyes with a hint of teal, and a small black tattooed serpent slithered over her hip bone. Beside her lay Nick, his skin equally as pale, though he wore deep red. It stood out on his pale form, accenting his muscled body. His pale blonde hair was rather long, and like his sister, he had an elegant air about him.

Beside them, a few feet away lay Chloe. Her gilded skin and raven hair slowed in the sun, as did her rather blaringly evident hicky. Next to her was Andromeda, her deep chocolate skin, and honey colored eyes lighting up in the sun. Cassidy, still clothed, joined Toby, taking out her potions essay. Soon the rest of the girls lay, tanning, as the dull buzz of drowsy conversation welled up.

"Oy, Malfoy! What are you doing here?" demanded a voice. Marina sighed, not even turning around. She knew all to well who it was and was not in the mood to deal with this particular boy. She shot Nick a look, letting him know that he went by the surname Malfoy as well…

"What do you want, Smith?" snapped Nick, turning around. His eyes were now more of a silverish color; their eyes did that when they were mad.

"Not you, Malfoy, Malfoy!" said Smith, not even realizing what he had said.

"Okay, one, that doesn't make sense, two what the damn are you here for?" spat Cassidy, curling her lip at the Ravenclaw as if he were a rather nasty animal she had just trodden upon.

"Not to talk to you, that's sure Lestrange," he snorted.

"Don't try sarcasm, it's not working, Smith," drawled Marina, not turning to meet his gaze.

"Hello Marina," Smith said. She could feel his bloody eyes burning a whole in her back.

"Don't call me that," she said coolly. She flipped her hair, and then turned, her steely eyes meeting his filthy ones.

"What should I call you then?" he said, eyes narrowed.

"How about you just get lost and never talk to me again? How's that for an idea?" she hissed.

"Malfoy? Please? I need to talk to you," he said, changing tactics and pleading.

"Alright. Fine, I'll come. But you have my attention for fifteen minutes max," she said, getting up. She pulled on her sorts, but left her top as was. She wanted to make him so bloody sorry…

They walked along the edge of the forest for four minutes in silence. Once the others were well out of ear shot and sight, he stopped.

"What?" she said, her tone still slightly chilly.

"Well, you see. Umm, I err. You know," he said, acting uncharacteristically nervous.

"No, I don't see," she retorted, leaning against a tree. She crossed her arm and watched him through narrowed eyes.

"Well you know the Halloween dance?" he said, mumbling.

"Yeah, being a prefect I know that sort of thing," she said coolly. She knew what was coming next, she even knew her answer…

"Want to. You know… Go with me?" he asked trying a smile.

And that was not it. Not what she had been expecting at all. But she knew this one too. Ooh, ooh, call on Marina!

"Not particularly," she said, as if he had asked her whether or not she thought his shirt was nice. He gaped at her for a moment, before he slowly began to turn redder and redder.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY GIRLS WOULD LIKE ME TO ASK THEM OUT? AND YOU REJECT ME?" bellowed Smith.

"Hate to stop your little ego-stroking session, but you're not a stud. Their all in Slytherin, my friend. No, scratch that, there is one of you Ravenclaws, Bagnok. Oh, and scratch the other bit, I'm not your friend. As I was saying. If a million girls are dying to go out with you then why don't you ask one of them? A lot of boys like me too, so we're even. Except I actually have looks and a brain, while you have neither," she said in an aggravatingly bored tone.

"WHY?" he roared, face and ears staying an alarming shade of red, a tomato would have been proud of.

"Ooh, let's try this one: because I fucking dumped you for bloody cheating on the hottest girl in school, being me? Or could it be that I hate you more than my brother does? Or how about the small fact that you're a fucking bastard with eyes only for girls you aren't with?" she said. She turned on her heel, flipped her long hair and stalked off. She made sure he could watch her all the way back to the beach. Oh yes, she would make him sorry.

"So. Your not telling us what he wanted, hmm?" drawled Nick, looking hopefully at his sister. She shed her shorts, and went over to sit next to Toby. But she dipped her bare feet in the water, as she leaned over his book looking at what he was reading. Anamagi…Interesting.

"Maybe. Maybe not. You all have to earn it," she said smugly, then tied her hair in a messy knot on her head, leaving the peeping tom Gryffindor's drooling. Then she dove into the water, and was soon followed by most of the properly clothed people in Slytherin.

"Don't splash me! You bloody bastard!" she laughed splashing Sam in the face. Nat jumped in and dove straight for her, tickling her mercilessly.

"Stop! Stop! You brute! Will!" she said pushing him away, writhing madly. Will laughed and they began to brawl in the shallows playfully which slowly became a full fledged boy war.

Marina had a knack for making boys fight amongst themselves quietly. She and Chloe exchanged knowing glances, then sprawled on the beach to watch them and dry off.


End file.
